Trifolium angustifolium
Encyclopedia
Trifolium angustifolium is a species of clover
known by the common names narrow clover and narrowleaf crimson clover.
It can be found elsewhere as an introduced species
, including an invasive species
in parts of North America, such as California
.
s tipped with bristles. The herbage is hairy in texture.
The inflorescence
is a cylindrical spike of flowers measuring 1 to 5 centimeters long. Each flower has a calyx of sepal
s with long, hairy, needle-like lobes that harden into bristles as the plant dries. Within each calyx is a pink corolla about a centimeter long.
Clover
Clover , or trefoil, is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes...
known by the common names narrow clover and narrowleaf crimson clover.
Distribution
It is native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa. Trifolium angustifolium occurs in many types of habitat, including disturbed areas.It can be found elsewhere as an introduced species
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
, including an invasive species
Invasive species
"Invasive species", or invasive exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions....
in parts of North America, such as California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Description
Trifolium angustifolium is an annual herb growing erect in form. The leaves are divided into narrow leaflets which are linear to lance-shaped and measure up to 4.5 centimeters long. The leaves have stipuleStipule
In botany, stipule is a term coined by Linnaeus which refers to outgrowths borne on either side of the base of a leafstalk...
s tipped with bristles. The herbage is hairy in texture.
The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a cylindrical spike of flowers measuring 1 to 5 centimeters long. Each flower has a calyx of sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s with long, hairy, needle-like lobes that harden into bristles as the plant dries. Within each calyx is a pink corolla about a centimeter long.